What Do the Shang Kuei and the Zhou Kuei Have In Common?

39  bar falls 30.21 7mph NNE dewpoint 14

           Full Moon of Winds

Warren Wolfe handed out a sheet at the Woolly retreat, a project development sheet that involves identifying a project or activity that compels us in some way.  I missed his presentation since I left early for Hawai’i, so I have to fill it out now.  The answer that keeps coming up for me is the permaculture work Kate and I plan here. 

The whole notion of working with our land so that it grows healthier and we gain more foodstuffs from it attracts me, as I’ve said earlier.  With Warren’s notion I can keep this work both before a group who can help me with my accountability and have a built in audience, too.  I’m writing about it here to let those of who read this know.  You can enter my circle of accountability, too, if you wish.

As the notion becomes clearer, I write here, on the Permaculture page, what exactly we intend to do for this year.  I don’t know enough quite yet to put down objectives, but I imagine they will mostly be preparatory.  There are projects from last year that will get finished anyhow like the firepit and converting most of the raised beds to vegetables.  There are two that will get some work done on them this year, but will probably not finish:  the grandkids playhouse in the woods and the root cellar.  The Permaculture work is in addition to these already planned projects.  

Still deep in the Shang and Zhou dynasties, trying to decide how to present a large collection of bronze vessels that can be daunting for first-time viewers.  I’ve made a couple of decisions.  We’ll start in the Neolithic ceramics, the 1st case in the ceramics gallery and move to the Bronze Age ceramic case before we head over to the Bronze gallery.  This will place the development of bronze squarely in the material culture roots from which it sprang.  It will also show the mutual interaction between bronze vessel design and ceramics.  Bronze imitates ceramics at first, then, later ceramics imitate bronze. 

The Shang and the Zhou get equal treatment in my mind so far, but I haven’t selected actual objects.  The Shang kuei and hu, the Pillsbury owl (tsun), the ritual bell, the ting all seem likely to make the cut.  But, we’ll see.  Many more pages to read and objects to see.

Back to the Shang Dynasty

31  bar rises 30.24 4mph ENE dewpoint 13

             Full Moon of Winds

A visit to the dermatologist.  Oh, boy.  Talk about quick.  He looked at my elbows, looked at my knees, looked at my face.  He said don’t use the steriods too much–I never do–and give yourself a week vacation from them every three weeks–new information–and come back in a year.  Good-bye.  Wish all medicine was as clear and effecient.

I’ve begun my reading on Chinese bronzes.  I’d forgotten that the early bronzes imitated ceramic shapes and decoration and were then superceded by painted lacquer and, eventually, stimulated ceramic imitations. 

Received an invitation to the Chinese New Years dinner that the Chinese CIF folks put on each year.  I love to go because it gives me a chance to reconnect with my CIF friends.  This year I hope to get a tutor in Chinese pronounciation from among them.

This event will be in the Lauderdale City Hall.  Lauderdale is a blip on the geography of the Twin Cities located between 280 and the UofM golf-course on Larpenter.  And it has city hall.  Imagine.

Well, back to the Shang dynasty.